Effects of new school meal guidelines limited in Tri-Cities

Tri-City students have quite a selection when it comes to healthy meal options at school, administrators say.

In Pasco, students may take as much as they like, whether that’s two apples or oranges with their meal or an extra serving of vegetables, and many take advantage of this, said Kristen Blair, that district’s nutrition services supervisor. Richland and Kennewick students also are given a lot of choices, which officials said increases the likelihood of being able to eat something healthy that they like.

A recently released study from the University of Washington found middle and high school students in an unidentified urban school district in the state were choosing healthier foods with fewer calories than they were before the new guidelines were put in place.

“This study shows that the updated school meal standards are effective,” said Donna B. Johnson, the study’s lead author, in a release.

Those overseeing meal programs in the Tri-Cities said the new meal standards provided some appreciated guidance, but also came with struggles as cafeteria staff were forced to make sure all children had some fruits and vegetables on their tray, leading to some food waste and expense. And really, school officials said, it didn’t really change breakfast and lunch menus that much to begin with.

“We have such a bounty here. We already were eating pretty well,” Blair said.

The UW study looked at the foods selected by 7,200 students in three middle schools and three high schools beginning a year before and up to a year after the new meal standards under the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act, were implemented in 2012. Results showed that the nutritional quality of student food choices increased by 29 percent while the caloric value dropped by 13 percent.

Researchers noted that the study only looked at one school district and only at purchasing behavior, not whether students actually ate all the food on their trays. Regardless, they said it shows improving food choices can lead to better student health.

“This study reinforces the need to continue, not roll back, the good work happening in schools nationwide and that includes offering plenty of fruits and vegetables to the more than 30 million kids who rely on school meals each day,” said Monica Hobbs Vinluan, a senior program officer with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, which partially funded the study.

Many Tri-City schools already offered a lot of fruits and vegetables before the new standards, school officials said, with Blair noting that her department has long known “the better the produce, the more kids will take it.” The Mid-Columbia’s diverse agricultural products make it relatively easy to design healthy meals, they said.

But the standards weren’t just about providing options, but requiring students to take a minimum of fruits or vegetables at each meal. That’s easier said than done with kids who can be picky eaters.

“At first, we’d hear the thumping sound of whole apples going in the trash can,” said Sam Shick, nutrition services director for Kennewick schools.

The federal meal guidelines have relaxed in some ways since they were implemented, school officials said, and they’ve found ways to reduce waste and still give kids a lot of options, such as creating “sharing tables” where unwanted portions can be left for other students who may want them.

The standards likely have improved student eating habits in some parts of the country, Mid-Columbia officials said. But here, it wasn’t much of an issue to begin with.

“I just don’t think we here in Washington state ever did that bad,” said Dawn Trumbull, Richland’s nutrition services director.

This story was originally published January 31, 2016 at 8:52 PM with the headline "Effects of new school meal guidelines limited in Tri-Cities."